IMH 74:4 362

"Chronicles of Upper Burnet" (1)

Wednesday, December 29th.

14° below zero at sunrise this morning and about zero all
day on the porch. A very cutting wind came from the northwest
and it was very cold. The sun shone in the middle of the day
but clouds drove over all the time and frost flew in clouds in
the evening mingled with snow. Nothing was done except cut­
ting some wood, and the chores except that I began a letter to
Dwight Calhoun.(89) It was too cold to squiz or go away from
home

 

Teaching note. It has been noted that the winter of 1880-81 was bitterly cold. Out in
the states of Montana and North Dakota, the great herds were nearly completely
decimated. The ranchers simply could not get feed to the starving herds. Willa Cather's
novels about the northern great plains vividly describes the winters the settlers --usually
immigrants-- had to endure. The students might enjoy having a section of "My Antonia"
read to them.